May 5, 2012
My husband Bernie and I were at
our condo in Vero Beach, Florida and had just returned home from a
Republican Women’s Kentucky Derby fundraiser party. Within the last two years, I had noticed a
reoccurring rash on my ring finger that frequently made me take my engagement
ring off. After the party, I was certain
I took my ring off and placed it on the dresser. Little did I know it wouldn’t be there the
next time I went to put it on. Lost in
my vacation activities, I am still unsure how many days later I went to look
for my ring, but I do know that when I did; it wasn’t there. While my husband was taking a nap, I
frantically looked for it. It wasn’t on
the dresser, behind the dresser, under the dresser, the bed; it was gone and I
had no idea how or when I was going to explain this one to my husband.
So that is the story of my
ring. The real story and purpose of this
blog. My lost ring was never found but
is the reason I found I had a benign brain tumor.
June 6, 2012
At some point, I had to tell
Bernie. I was afraid to because he
always told me not to take it off because I would lose it. The good thing is the ring was insured, but I
did not tell him for two weeks after I had torn the condo in Vero Beach apart. He kept asking me where was the engagement
ring and why was I not wearing it. He
wanted to take it to a jewelry store where we had taken the ring before and
have them put another anti nickel metal protection plate on the inside of the
ring. Finally, at dinner one night after
I had given him 2 Bourbons and a large glass of wine for dinner I broke the
news. Of course, I heard," I told
you so". But, he did not get mad at
me because I was so upset and he hates to see me cry.
He knew that it was insured and
told me that we would look for another one when we got back home to
Richmond. I was so glad I had told him
and that weight could be lifted off my shoulders and heart. Phew.
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
We met with a State Farm agent
to file a claim on the engagement ring. Our
personal property agent Myra Howard looked at my finger and said I could see
why you took off the ring.
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Bernie and I met with Adolph,
Bernie’s longtime friend and owner of a well-known jewelry store, Adolph’s
Jewelers. They made my original
ring. After explaining the irritation I
continued to have and the whole reason I took it off, Adolph said, “What are
you allergic too”? Well, I did not know.
So, I made an appointment with Dr. Mike Armstrong an Ear, Nose, Throat and Allergy
doctor in Richmond, VA.
Friday, July 13, 2012
I chose Dr. Mike Armstrong
because I’ve known him personally for10 years.
I coached him in an Adult Masters Swim Program at the Tuckahoe YMCA. My
appointment with Mike was 2-fold. After a Rhinoplasty I had in 1975, I have
had a problem with drainage from my left nasal passage and blockage. It has been annoying me for many years, but
because I needed to find out what my metal allergy was, I figured I could
finally ask someone about what I could do to fix this nasal problem.
Monday, July 16, 2012
My appointment with Mike came
up with two diagnoses. One, I had noticeable blockage in my left nasal passage
caused by scar tissue from the rhinoplasty 35 years ago. Two, Mike was going to
send me for a C- Scan to see how bad the blockage was. Then, I was to meet back
with him the following week to determine if I needed surgery to remove the
blockage. As far as the allergy and the
main reason for my doctor’s visit, he was not sure if I was allergic to a
particular metal but suggested I choose a platinum or 18-carat gold ring to
prevent future painful rashes on my ring finger.
Monday, July 23, 2012
I scheduled my Cranial CT scan at Henrico Doctors Hospital. Bernie and I went to the appointment
together. I found the staff in this
hospital left me with a calm feeling. It helped because I was really nervous. What
is a Cranial CT scan anyway? Prior to
going in for my appointment, I researched it and this is one of the answers I
found...
(CAT) scan, is an X-ray
procedure that combines many X-ray images with the aid of a computer to
generate cross-sectional views of a certain area. Computerized tomography is more commonly
known by its abbreviated names, CT scan or CAT scan. A CT scan is used to
define normal and abnormal structures in the body. For me it was a Cranial Ct scan to find the
extent of the scar tissue blockage in my left nasal cavity.
I was asked to lie on a narrow
table that slid into the center of the CT scanner.
Once inside the scanner, the
machine's x-ray beam rotated around me.
The modern "spiral" scanner performed the exam without
stopping. I was told that a computer creates separate images of the brain area,
called slices. These images can be stored, viewed on a monitor, or printed on
film. I was asked to be really still during the exam, because movement can
cause blurred images. I was also asked to hold my breath for short periods of
time. The good thing was the completed scans took only a few minutes and it was
basically painless except for the cold table. I asked for a heated blanket but
the guy doing the scan just laughed. I wasn’t kidding, but I didn’t ask again. The bad part was I read in the Consumer
Reports magazine that the radiation from CT scans- are equivalent to 100 to 500
chest X-rays-which might contribute to an estimated 29,000 future cancers a
year, a 2009 study suggests. Oh, great!
Now I can worry about cancer.
Before leaving, Bernie wanted to know how much the C-scan cost. You have
to know Bernie.
After we were completely done
with the treatment, I was given a DVD of the results and was told to take the
DVD back to my appointment with Dr. Armstrong the following Monday.
Friday, July 27, 2012
I received a call from Dr.
Armstrong’s Assistant. I wondered why his office was calling me. I had a follow up appointment on Monday,
today was Friday. I did not know Dr.
Armstrong’s office had already received an email of my C-scan results. It was late
in the afternoon and Bernie’s daughter, Jane was in town so I decided not to
call them back. It could wait, I
thought.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Today was my follow up appointment
with Dr. Armstrong.
Dr. Armstrong told me the
C-scan found a meningiomas
Benign Brian Tumor of the frontal lobe. He went on to say that I needed a MRI and also
needed a neurosurgeon. I only came if
for a blocked nasal cavity and was shocked to here such a foreign diagnosis. I asked him to repeat the information and I
videoed it on my iphone. Not knowing any
neurosurgeons’ I asked him, “If your Mother needed brain surgery whom would you
have operate on her?” Right away he answered,
Dr. K. Singh Sahni at the Neuro Center at Johnston Willis Hospital in Richmond,
VA. I asked why and he said that his mom
actually did have surgery by him. Maybe
this is more common than I realized. With
the help of his staff, I scheduled an MRI and was told that someone in Dr.
Sahni’s office would call me to set up an appointment with him. This was all happening so fast.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Today was my MRI. The technician asked me repeatedly if I was
claustrophobic. Over and over, I
answered no. Okay, so maybe I was wrong.
I was told to remove my watch and all other jewelry and place it in a
locker. No thank you. I would give the jewelry to my husband. Bernie was there with me waiting in a 10x10
box of a waiting room. The only pleasant thing about the small waiting room was
a large ivy plant flowing over onto the floor.
God bless the Kindle so Bernie could read his books while he
waited. I gave the jewelry to him. Next time, I will not take any jewelry.
The next thing I knew the
technicians were putting a space like helmet over my head with bars in front
that cradled my cranium. I could barely
breathe or see. I was guided into a dark, tunnel-like tube, a kind of
medical solitary confinement where I spend the next 30 to 40 minutes. My ears were stuffed with plugs, covered by
sound-cancelling headphones. Good thing
since there were on and off LOUD sounds for over 40 minutes. Was this really happening all because I took
my engagement ring off and it disappeared?
Friday, August 3, 2012
I was now at my first
appointment with Dr. Sahni. I met with
his assistant and filled out a medical history form that took me thirty minutes
to complete. It seemed like they wanted
to know everything about me that had ever happened. Bernie was not with me because he had another
doctor appointment for himself. Geez,
don’t we sound exciting! I was lucky
that Dr. Sahni office had called me and said they had a cancelation and I could
come in earlier than my original appointment.
I was worried and the sooner that I could have an idea of what I was
about to go through, the better.
Dr. Sahni showed me the
MRI. And, he explained it was a Meninoga
Benign Brain Tumor on the left frontal lobe and the size of an egg. He
explained the tumor was benign, but it was large enough that it needed to be
surgically removed. If it was smaller he could zap it with a gamma knife laser,
but of course, I had to have a large one.
He asked if I had headaches,
and I said no. I did in the past, but
not now. He knew I exercised everyday
from the paper work I had filled out and said adrenalin helps the frontal lobe
function and that is probably why working out helps me feel better.
Always
thinking I had ADD I read that People with ADD or ADHD often have depressed moods
and anxiety. They have those feelings because their frontal lobe, their CEO,
can't manage the busy activity of the mid brain. Could it be
possible I do not have ADD and it was the tumor pressing on my frontal lobe and
making me think I had ADD? Dr. Sahni
said it was highly possible!
Here is an overview from my understanding thus far about a
meningioma:
A meningioma is a type of tumor that grows from the
protective membranes, called meninges, which surround the brain and spinal
cord. Most meningiomas are benign (not cancerous) and slow growing; the reason
they think mine is benign is because of the calcified mineral deposits C-scan found.
Symptoms are typically gradual because these are slow growing
tumors and mostly affect women between the ages of 40 to 60. Meningiomas tend to grow inward and due to
the size of mine, the tumor had to be removed s that it could relieve the
compression it was placing on my brain.
What were my symptoms?
Frontal lobe tumors can cause behavioral and emotional changes. Over the last few years I have had memory
loss issues, speech problems (difficulty finding the right word), and vision
problems. I had surgery for acute angle
closure two years ago. This is the stage
right before glaucoma. And, if the tumor
was not found early enough I could have had seizures. I could not be more thankful for having a
metal allergy and losing my ring!
Wednesday, August 8,
2012
Dr. Sahni ordered for me to have a Cerebral Angiogram a day
before my brain surgery. So, Bernie and
I met with Dr. Spinos who would perform this surgery.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
I was back for my second visit
with Dr. Sahni. He met with Bernie and
my friend Janet Goode who is a nurse. I found out later she worked for Dr.
Sahni for 7 years at Johnston Willis Hospital in the neuro ICU. Small world.
Bernie agreed that if Janet liked him and thought so highly of him, he
was the doctor for me. He also said that
I would be the only patient he would have for the entire day of surgery. A good thing to know.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Dr. Sahni sent me to Dr. Ed
Peck at Neurophyschological Services of Virginia for pre-neurophyschological testing. This would demonstrate my cognitive abilities
pre and post-surgery.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
I went back to the testing
center for 3 hours of cognitive testing.
I got every question wrong on one memory test. Apparently, my short term memory is non-existent. I can’t wait to re-take it after the tumor
has been removed. Maybe I really am a
genius! Well, even if I am not, at least
I know why I have had these memory and cognitive issues for all of these
years.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
I left the testing center and
drove to pick up Bernie. We went for my pre-op
at the Johnston Willis Hospital Surgery center.
